


Happee Birthdae Madi!

by eternaleponine



Series: Where There Is A Flame [35]
Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Birthday Party, F/F, Family, Fluff
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-10-20
Updated: 2019-10-20
Packaged: 2020-12-27 00:13:26
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,308
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21109499
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eternaleponine/pseuds/eternaleponine
Summary: Madi and Adria are turning eleven.  What better way to celebrate than sending them to Hogwarts?  Or, more accurately, bringing Hogwarts to their own backyard.





	Happee Birthdae Madi!

**Author's Note:**

> This isn't so much a story as a snapshot of where the Ohana is now... or really just an excuse for me to write the awesome birthday party idea I had. 😁

"Are you _sure_ you're not going a little overboard?" Anya asked, nudging Lexa as she finished setting out the goodie bags on a table. 

Lexa looked at her and rolled her eyes. "Says the woman who was not content to just dye vanilla cake different colors for different houses, but instead had to come up with a different _flavor_ that corresponded with the color for the house," she said. "Says the woman who decided that the cake needed to represent the four different houses in the first place!" 

"If you're doing a Hogwarts-themed party, you need a Hogwarts-themed cake!" Anya said. "It's simple logic!" 

"And if you're doing a Hogwarts-themed party, go big or go home," Lexa countered. But as she looked around at the various tents and stations they'd set up, she wondered if maybe they _had_ gone a little bit overboard. But Madi wouldn't have a Bat Mitzvah, or a Quinceanera, or probably even a Sweet 16. (Was that even a thing anymore? Had it ever been a thing on anything other than MTV?) Her native culture was Nerd, and was there a more momentous birthday for a bookworm than the one on which one's Hogwarts letter showed up? 

"And remember it's for both of them," Echo said, sauntering up already in her costume: a bodysuit and jodhpurs painted dappled gray to match her horse, Firenze. Her hair was braided back from her face like one would braid a horse's tail. "Where's Clarke?"

"Inside," Lexa said. "You need her to do your face?"

"And hands," Echo said. "This is all going to be a bitch to get off." She shook her head with a wry smile. "But it'll be worth it." _I hope,_ Lexa knew she was thinking, but she didn't say it. They'd been planning the shared birthday party for Madi and Adria for months, and the entire Ohana had gotten in on it. Madi's birthday had been back in August, and they'd had a small family celebration for her then, but she'd wanted to wait to have her big party until they were back in school (so she had more people to invite) and so it fell between her birthday and Adria's in late November, to share the fun. Now they just had to hope they could pull it off. 

"I'm sure Luna will help," Anya said, smirking. 

Echo rolled her eyes – it was a pretty common reaction when Anya decided to crack wise – but grinned. "You should see her," she said. "She looks amazing." 

"She's got the hair for it," Lexa said. Luna had decided that she would attend as Professor Trelawney, and had spent hours putting together little booklets about reading tea leaves, some of it real – or as real as any sort of divination could be – and some of it entirely made up for laughs. The kids would get to have cups of tea – decaf, of course – and then attempt to read their leaves, with Luna fluttering around them, prepared to pronounce ridiculous doomsday prophecies. 

They hadn't thought about the fact that Firenze was the centaur that had taken over for Trelawney when Umbridge tried to send her packing until after the fact, and were amused by the connection. "I just hope none of the kids remember that Firenze is supposed to be palomino," Echo said. 

"I'd like to think our daughters have better sense than to be friends with anyone that pedantic," Lexa said. "Likewise if they decide to point out that you have both a horse and human head." Echo had been working with Firenze all summer to be able to ride him without a bridle, controlling him only with the pressure of her legs, and had acquired a horse bow so she could do an archery demonstration from horseback. If the kids were still thinking about the minor inaccuracies after that... well, Lexa just might kick their asses. 

Echo nodded. "I'd better go find Clarke." She went into the house, where Clarke and Tris were helping various members of the Ohana with last minute tweaks to their costumes and makeup. 

Madi came bursting out, her eyes wide as she took everything in. "Oh. Em. Gee." She threw her arms around Lexa, her chin digging into Lexa's chest. She'd grown like a weed over the summer, and Lexa suspected with the next few years she would be as tall as Clarke, if not taller. "Mama, it's _amazing_!" 

"Thanks, Bug," Lexa said, pressing a kiss to the top of Madi's head. "I hope you and your friends will have fun." 

"Um, how could we _not_?" Madi asked. "It's _Hogwarts_. _And_ Hogsmeade, _and_ Diagon Alley all rolled into one! This is pretty much the coolest thing that has ever happened in a backyard _ever_." She squeezed Lexa again. "Have I said thank you yet? Because thank you, thank you, thank you!"

"You have," Lexa said. "A few times." She smiled. "But I don't think any of us mind hearing it again." 

"Thank you thank you thank you again!" Madi said. She peeled herself away and launched herself at Anya, who should have been prepared but wasn't, and with Madi's added height she managed to rock her back half a step before she caught her balance. 

"You're welcome," Anya said. "I had fun making the cake. I hope you like it."

"I will," Madi said, with a level of confidence that was usually reserved for mediocre cishet white men. "It's _cake_. What's not to like?"

"You have a point," Anya conceded, ruffling her hair. "Let me help your Mama finish up here, all right? Why don't you go find Adria?"

"Good idea," Madi said, and went tearing toward the Big House, as they called it, although Main House might have been more appropriate, as the house that Lexa, Clarke, and Madi shared was by no means small. 

"You think she'll still have that much energy by the end of the day?" Anya asked. 

Lexa considered. "Hard to say. On one hand, she'll be busy all afternoon. On the other hand, she'll be full of candy, and cake, and Butterbeer, so..." 

"So she'll have that much energy until the sugar crash, at which point she'll be out cold," Anya said. 

"That sounds about right," Lexa said. 

Anya grabbed a few bags from the box Lexa had been carrying them in. "Explain to me again how this is going to work," she said. "How do you know you have the right number for each house?" Because each bag – a string-style backpack that could be reused by the guests in the future – was in one of the house colors, with the house crest printed on the front. 

"Because we're clever," Lexa said. "When we sent out the invitations – or when Madi delivered them – the RSVP card had a little quiz for the kid to fill out that would Sort them. The answers are pretty obvious, so if they wanted to be a specific house, they could make sure to pick the answers to go with it." 

"Unlike Madi, who really wanted it to be a surprise," Anya said. 

"Unlike Madi," Lexa agreed. Madi wanted to be Sorted properly, so before her birthday, they'd done one of the Sorting quizzes online, and for the cake she'd had on her actual birthday, they'd made it the color of her house, so she found out when they cut into it. Because gender reveals were ridiculous, but Hogwarts house reveals were awesome. Lexa hadn't been particularly surprised when the result had been Gryffindor like Clarke; at least her house, Ravenclaw, had been a fairly close second. 

"What if someone does get upset?" Anya asked. 

"There are a few extras for each house," Lexa admitted. "Just in case. Any that don't end up getting used we'll donate to the hospital to give to the kids there." Which had been Madi's idea – the hospital holding a special place in her heart, even with all of the poking and prodding she'd undergone there, because of the role it had played in bringing their family together. 

"That's awesome," Anya said. "Do you mind if I go check on Tris?"

"Not at all," Lexa said. If anyone was as excited about this party as Madi, it was Tris. She'd learned how to use a wood lathe, and had decided that she was going to be Ollivander's great-great-great-great-great (the number of greats varied every time she said it) granddaughter, and that there would be no cheap plastic wands at this party. Instead she'd shaped and stained handles of different shapes and sizes, and then the wand part, with a hole in the middle to put the core in. The unicorn hair was actual hair from the horses' tails, sprayed silver. The dragon heartstring was elastic thread she'd dyed red, and the phoenix feathers were a feather boa that had made the ultimate sacrifice. Once the guests had chosen the handle, wand, and core they liked, she would help them put it together, and it would be theirs to keep. 

Anya disappeared into the house, leaving Lexa alone again... but not for long. The rest of the Ohana was arriving, and she found herself playing traffic controller, finding places for them to park where their cars wouldn't spoil the illusion, since none of them drove a Ford Anglia. 

They'd done as much of the setup as they could the night before, and thankfully the weather had cooperated so they hadn't had to get too nervous about leaving things out overnight, but there were still a million last minute details to take care of, and an increasingly short amount of time to take care of them in. 

"Relax," Clarke said, slipping her arm around Lexa's waist. "Everything is going to be perfect." 

Lexa smiled, leaning her head against her wife's shoulder for a moment. "I hope so," she said. "If we can't pull this off..."

"Then we'll have at least tried," Clarke said. "Even if things aren't _perfect_, every other birthday party these kids have ever been to is going to pale in comparison." She grinned at Lexa, tipping her face up for a kiss, and Lexa didn't try to argue, with her words or with the unspoken command. She let herself melt into it, just for a second, until the first car pulled into the driveway, and she took up her position at the "entrance" to Hogwarts – an arch painted to look like stone that led the children into a little area where they could line up for their turn on the stool, while Lexa wielded the Sorting Hat (and a little spreadsheet on her phone that told her what child belonged in one house, with a few tidbits of information either from the quiz or from Madi that she could have the Sorting Hat 'hmm' and 'harummm' over before making its pronouncement. 

"I think I had fewer butterflies in my stomach before our wedding," she muttered to Clarke as a cluster of kids approached, wide-eyed as they tried to take it all in. 

Clarke laughed. "You'll be fine. I'm going to go check on everyone else." 

Lexa nodded, and Madi and Adria came charging over to greet their friends. Some had come in costume – the invitation had said they were welcome but not required – and a few carried presents, not for Madi but for dogs at the guide dog foundation where Betta, and now their new puppy Molly, had come from, and had or would return to. Madi had decided she didn't need anything, but the nonprofit could always use more dog toys and treats and blankets and whatnot, so that's what she'd asked for if people felt compelled to bring something. 

Thankfully – but also chaotically – everyone arrived pretty much right on time, and suddenly there was a small army of children gathered in front of Lexa as she called Madi to take her place on the stool. 

"Shouldn't it be alphabetical?" one of the kids piped up. "Her last name begins with W! Or G... I dunno, but anyway mine starts with B!"

"It's her _birthday_, doofus," the girl next to him said, nudging him not entirely gently. "_Obviously_ she gets to go first." 

"Fiiiiine," the impatient boy grumped. 

Lexa started to give the little speech she'd prepared, only to be interrupted again. "What about the song?" someone asked. "The Sorting Hat always has a song!" 

"Trust me," Lexa said, "you don't want to hear me sing."

"That's not true, Mama," Madi said. "You're a good singer!" 

Lexa gave her a Look, and Madi grimaced. "Sorry," she mouthed.

"No song this time," Lexa said, and went on with her speech, welcoming them to a new year – their first year – at Hogwarts. She told them a little about what awaited them inside, and then picked up the hat, which had intentionally been made oversized so it dropped partway over the kids' faces when she put it on them. After a little thought, she announced, "Gryffindor!" and Madi plucked it triumphantly from her head and donned her red-lined robes, which had been one of the few birthday gifts she'd received. "Adria, you're next," she said, motioning her over. 

Adria sat down, looking slightly nervous as the hat was lowered over her head. She'd also wanted to be surprised, and technically she wouldn't turn eleven until November, but they'd had her take the longer quiz, and Lexa declared her, "Hufflepuff!" 

Lexa couldn't tell from the look on her face whether she was disappointed; a lot of kids would be, but Hufflepuff was an underrated house, in her opinion. There was a lot to be said for hard work, loyalty, and tenacity. And who wanted to mess with a badger? 

Madi grabbed her hands and danced around in a circle, wrapping a yellow-lined robe around her that matched her own, and then Adria was smiling, so whatever she might have felt initially had turned to happiness. 

After that it was a steady stream of kids, until everyone had been given their house assignment – and there was no tears or arguing, thank the party gods – and their goody bags, and they were sent off to explore the different stations in whatever order they wanted, with some of the adults acting as traffic controllers to hopefully prevent everyone from going the same place at the same time. 

Lexa slung her camera across her body so she would have it for any moments she wanted to capture, but also kept her phone at the ready, because it could capture photos with motion, meaning Madi would have proper wizarding photos of the event as well. She saw Clarke steering some of the kids away from Ollivanders, where most of them had made a beeline, telling them they could come back, and wouldn't they like to check out Herbology or play some Quidditch? Or how about a bit of Unfogging the Future? 

She snapped a picture as a few kids stopped dead in their tracks when they saw Firenze moving through the crowd. 

"Holy shhhhoot!" one girl said. "That looks like... I mean it doesn't look a real centaur because centaurs aren't real, but _whoa_." 

"Mars _is_ bright tonight," Echo agreed, and Firenze snorted and bobbed his head. 

The kids burst out laughing. "I know it's like, super offensive to ask to pet a centaur," one said, "but..."

"It's all right," Echo said, and patted the horse's neck while the kids gathered around, stroking his shoulders and nose. Firenze stood calmly, accepting the attention as if he was only being given his due, and Lexa flashed Echo a thumb's up as she moved on, trying to keep an eye on everyone, but especially Madi, because she was a party organizer second and a mother first, and she wanted to see her daughter's reactions to the magical world they'd created for her and her friends. 

She found her at the Herbology station, where Gina was dressed like a younger version of Professor Sprout (her growing belly only adding to the image of the plump professor), and kids were decorating pots that they would then plant succulents in that they could take home. (If one was giving a living party favor, Lexa figured one that thrived on being forgotten for periods of time was an ideal one.) Persy flitted around wearing Veelu's fairy wings from the wedding, an escaped pixie who caused nearly as much havoc as the ones in the books. Theoretically she was supposed to be helping entertain the baby mandrake (otherwise known as Charlie) and keep them in their pot (otherwise known as a playpen) but at three, her attention span was limited. Still, it was good practice for when she became a big sister in a few months. 

"Mama, look!" Madi said, holding up her pot, which sported the classic spectacles and scar motif. "Do you like it?"

"It's awesome," Lexa said. "Did you pick out your plant yet?"

"Not yet," Madi said. "I'll let everyone else pick what they want first." She pushed up on her toes to whisper in Lexa's ear, "Because I know we have extras so I can just pick the best one that's left." She grinned. Lexa winked and tweaked the end of one of her braids, then snapped a few pictures of the kids painting and potting, gleefully digging into the soil. 

"Flying lessons!" Emori called, holding up a broom and waving it. "Flying lessons taught by stars of your favorite Quidditch teams! Much safer than Apparation!" She held up her left arm, the one that stopped at the elbow. "You do _not_ want to get Splinched!" 

A few of the kids looked at her in horror and scooted away. 

"Oops," Emori said when she saw Lexa. 

"Some kids have no sense of humor," Lexa said. "_I_ thought it was hilarious." 

"I thought it was pretty clever myself," Emori said. "At least I didn't scare them away from the Quidditch pitch completely..." She gestured to where Octavia, dressed in a Holyhead Harpies uniform, and Lincoln, in Chudley Cannons orange, were forming kids into two teams and explaining the rules of non-airborn Quidditch – which they'd learned for the party – to them. Soon they were off and running, chasing after Aden, who had come home from college for the weekend just to help with the party, and gamely agreed to play the Snitch. 

Lexa kept walking, turning towards a peal of laughter to find Raven in her Mad-Eye Moody getup, exhorting some of the guests not to keep their newly-made wands in their back pockets, because they might lose a buttock. 

"Who do you know who's ever lost a buttock?" Ontari demanded. She'd opted to dress as Tonks, and had a few prosthetic noses, wigs and colored contacts to switch during the duration of the party, in the hope that when the kids saw her she never looked quite the same twice. 

"CONSTANT VIGILANCE!" Raven shouted back, thumping the walking stick she carried – and needed, because the peg-leg she'd crafted didn't allow for her to wear her leg brace – on the ground. The kids laughed again, and Ontari winked at them and shooed them along to their next destination. 

It was impossible to keep track of which kids had been where, but they seemed to be moving on a pretty regular basis, so Lexa trusted that they would all make it to everywhere they wanted to be. When their initial burst of energy seemed to be starting to flag, the adults began to herd them toward a tent they'd set up and decorated to look like the Great Hall, with color-coded house tables and flickering (electric) candles suspended from the ceiling. Stretched across the front, over the head table where the cake had pride of place in the center, was a banner that read "Happee Birthdae Madi and Adria!" On one side of the cake was a station for kids to pick from a variety of ice cream flavors (both mundane and a bit out of the ordinary) and on the other they could load up the dishes with toppings. Their very own Florean Fortescue's... with cake. 

They hadn't been able to figure out a way to make food magically appear on the tables – even they had their limits – so they'd set up another buffet along the wall, where the kids could try some of the other treats they'd read about in the books: cauldron cakes, pumpkin pasties, treacle tart... Murphy had been researching, modifying, and testing recipes for months, trying to figure out the best way to recreate the food of Hogwarts. And last, but certainly not least, there was Butterbeer. 

They called the kids up table by table, letting them fill their plates and bowls with as much as they thought they could eat. Given that they were teenagers, or close enough to it, Lexa suspected that even though there was enough food here to feed twice as many people as were actually there, they wouldn't be dealing with as many leftovers as one might think.

"What if you don't like the flavor for your house?" one of the kids asked Anya, who was serving up the cake. 

"You can any flavor you want," Anya said. "The house system is really just a formality to help keep people organized." 

"Can you have more than one flavor?" another one asked. 

"Pick one to start," Anya said. "Once everyone has had a piece, if you still have room you can try another." 

One girl started to shuffle by, looking dejected. "What's wrong?" Anya asked. 

"I can't have cake," she said. "It has gluten."

Anya smiled. "Not to worry," she said. "Our house elves made sure there would be something for everyone." She conferred with Murphy, and came back with a little mini cake, beautifully decorated. "Gluten free," she said.

The girl's eyes went wide. "Really?"

Anya drew an X over her heart. "We didn't want anyone to miss out. There's dairy-free ice cream, too, for those who need it." 

"Thank you!" the girl said, looking like she wanted to leap across the table and throw her arms around Anya. She moved along to add toppings to her ice cream. They'd made sure to label anything that had any potential allergens in it, not wanting to risk any medical incidents ruining the party. (They'd all heard the horror story about how Echo, when she was right about these kids' age, eating chocolate at a party even though she knew she shouldn't and getting sick in front of everyone, and how she'd been picked on so badly for it she'd been homeschooled for the rest of her school career.)

Which reminded Lexa... She waited for the kids to be done, then quickly went and grabbed a plate of chocolate-free cake, and fixed a sundae with Echo-safe toppings and carried them outside. 

Echo had collapsed into a chair, her legs stretched out in front of her, kneading her quads and the insides of her thighs. Firenze was tethered nearby, grazing. She looked up when Lexa approached, and smiled at the plate and bowl she offered. "Thanks," she said. "You didn't have to—"

"I know you don't want the kids to see you out of costume, so to speak," Lexa said, "and it's not like you can just ride the horse into the tent to get your own."

"Although it might be pretty funny to see their reactions if I did," Echo said. 

"I'm sure it would be epic," Lexa said. "And yet..."

Echo stuck out her tongue. "Party pooper."

"That's what I would be afraid of, yeah," Lexa said. "Pretty sure that would be some kind of health code violation." 

Echo threw back her head and laughed, loud enough that Firenze looked up as if to make sure she was all right. "Well played," she said, when she'd caught her breath again. "Seems like it's going pretty well," she said. "Everyone seems to be having a good time." 

Lexa nodded. "I've gotten a lot of really great pictures," she said. 

"Good," Echo said. "I know I haven't been able to see as much of what Adria's up to as I'd like."

"I've been trying to keep track of both of them," Lexa said. "Luckily they usually stick together. I think other people have been getting pictures when they can, too." 

Echo nodded, her mouth full of cake, which Firenze had gotten wind of and ambled over to investigate, so that Echo was trying to eat and fend off a horse at the same time. 

"I'll leave you to it," Lexa said. "I should get back in there." 

"Can you send out Ontari to deal with this beast?" Echo asked. 

"Will do," Lexa said, and ducked back inside. 

When the kids had all stuffed themselves with ice cream and cake and everything else (a few of them had managed to try a piece of all four flavors of cake) they shuffled them off to another tent, where they watched curiously as a man in wizard robes moved around on a small stage, frequently disappearing behind a curtain, from which strange noises were coming. When everyone was sitting down, he came out again... with Hedwig perched on his arm. 

"Hello," he said, "and welcome to Eeylop's Owl Emporium!" Except, of course, the owls weren't for sale. They were all wildlife rescues who could not, for one reason or another, be released back into the wild, and so they had become ambassadors for the rescue to spread the word about the importance of conservation. 

Lexa snapped a picture of Madi, staring with eyes as wide as the owl's, as the presenter told them about the bird he was holding, and owls in general. After a few minutes, he put the snowy owl back and came out with another one, a Great Horned Owl named Spooky. Lexa was surprised – but then not, because she remembered how much she had enjoyed presentations like this when she was young, on the rare occasions when she got to see them – by how still and quiet the kids were, murmuring in awe and occasionally raising their hands to ask questions. 

"For this last one, I'm going to need a volunteer," he said, and hands shot up all over the place. But of course he knew who the birthday girl was, so Madi was chosen, and there was a little grumbling from some of the other kids, but really, had they expected anything different? He handed Madi a glove to slip on and took her behind the curtain. When they came back out, she had a tiny owl, hardly bigger than a feathery softball, perched on her hand. 

"PIGWIDGEON!" the kids exploded, loud enough to make the owl twitch and fluff its feathers, doing its best to glare at them, but it was hard to take something that small seriously. Lexa was just happy that the rehabilitator had been able to find one to bring; it had been borrowed from another rescue. She knew that, along with 'Hedwig', it was something a proper Harry Potter party needed. 

When the presentation was over, the kids were given the opportunity to have their picture taken with some of the owls, for a small donation. Then they shuffled back out into the daylight, blinking at the sudden brightness, and had one last opportunity to visit any of the areas they hadn't before, and Echo got to show off her mounted archery skills as the kids perched along the paddock fence. Lexa doubted they truly understood how impressive what they were seeing was, but they made appropriately appreciative noises, and from the way Echo's face twisted as she tried not to grin, it was good enough for her.

Soon parents started arriving, and the kids were able to pick up their potted plant friends and stop at the Honeydukes table to fill up a bag of candy before heading home, sugared up and exhausted and grinning ear to ear. 

Finally, the last of the kids were gone, and they were left with a much emptier wizarding world... and a bit of a mess. It could have been worse, if the kids had had access to the candy during the party, or if they'd been allowed to take food out of the tent, but there was no way for several dozen kids to occupy a space for a period of time and not leave it a little worse for the wear. 

"I guess we'd better start cleaning up," Lexa sighed, leaning into Clarke.

Clarke shook her head. "Not yet. We haven't had our turn."

Lexa grinned. "You have a point." 

And so the adults that had made the magic happen made their way around to the stations they hadn't been in charge of, giving each of them a chance to show off. They made wands and potted plants and read their tea leaves, and laughed their way through a game of Quidditch with Molly the puppy as the Snitch They ate somewhat melted ice cream and more cake than was probably good for them, and finally collapsed on the ground in the shade. 

"Best. Birthday. Ever," Madi declared, sprawling against Lexa and Clarke. "I think I might be a little bit famous at school now."

Clarke laughed and stroked back her hair where it had curled loose from her braids. "Oh yeah?"

"Yeah," Madi said. "You can't have a party that epic and _not_ have people hear about it." 

"What about you?" Lexa heard Luna ask, wrapping her arms around Adria and pulling her into her chest in a hug. "Did you have a good time?"

Adria nodded. "Best birthday ever," she agreed, her tone more subdued than Madi's, but that was just the way she was. Lexa could see that her cheeks were flushed and her eyes glowing, a sure sign that she was happy. "Thank you," she added, looking at Luna and Echo, and then at the rest of them. 

"Yeah, thank you!" Madi said. "You all are the greatest, most magical Ohana anyone could ever ask for!"

They sent the girls inside to watch Veelu (although Veelu could watch herself, thankyouverymuch, she was _six_ now) and Persy and Charlie. They could have used the extra sets of hands, maybe, but they needed the littlest ones out from underfoot, and Lexa didn't think it was quite fair to expect them to dismantle the magical world that had been created for them. It was like a magician revealing how they did their tricks, and Lexa wanted them to be able to keep hold of that wonder a little longer. 

That night, they tucked Madi into bed, which wasn't a nightly thing anymore. Now that she was in sixth grade, she eschewed bedtime stories, and could tuck herself in (although they did often get cuddles on the couch in the last little while before bedtime). 

"Thank you," Madi said again. "Not just for today. For everything. When I was little..." She wrinkled her nose, acknowledging that, in the grand scheme of things, she was still pretty little, but... "I never imagined anything like this. Ever. I used to dream about having parents, and a family, but... but I didn't even know how to dream something this big then. But now I can."

"Now you can," Clarke agreed, leaning down and kissing her forehead. "You can dream as big as you want. We'll do everything we can to make it real." 

Madi nodded. "I love you, Mom," she said softly. 

"Love you too, Madi," Clarke said. 

"Love you, Mama," Madi added. 

Lexa sniffed and swallowed. "Love you too, Bug," she whispered. 

Madi opened her eyes again. "Are you crying?"

Lexa swiped at her eyes, smiling in apology. "Just a little."

"Why?"

"Because I didn't know how to dream big either," Lexa said. "Thank you," she looked at Madi, then at Clarke, "for teaching me how."


End file.
